With the scenes of tragedy shown hourly on the telly, it's no wonder it has an affect on one's emotions, which has led some FTers to get, well, emotional. While I don't agree with you on the subject of trying to snag cheaper tickets as a result of the disaster, everyone is entitled to their own opinions. Maybe I was raised in too strict a Church of Scotland household, but I feel there are just some things that aren't done out of simple, quiet respect to the victims. I feel the same way about a number of other somewhat related issues, such as store closing on Rememberence Day in Canada. H*ll, quite a few retailers here in Edmonton are even open today, New Year's Day, and wall-to-wall consumerism creeps forward another few inches.

This, in a way, brings me to the larger societal questions about how applicable some of these beliefs are in a 24/7 world. Do we take time in a hectic world to follow past traditions & practises, or do we chuck everyone over for the here & now? It's become a little too 'me first' a mentality and this thread is another example of one manifestation of that trend. By no means am I excluding myself from being a rat in the global rat race either, just getting a little worn down by the always on, in demand, drive-thru, nonstop, overheated, underwhelmed, packaged, sorted and shipped pace of modern life.

Thanks for letting me vent in what isn't even my home FT forum.